The Quentin Blake Centre for Illustration has taken up residence in a complex of 17th to 19th century industrial buildings that once formed part of London’s water supply system. Restoration led by Tim Ronalds Architects has converted the former Dunard Engine House into three gallery spaces along with studios and public areas now open to visitors for the first time. The site opening realises a 25-year campaign by the celebrated illustrator to establish a national hub for an art form that communicates stories and ideas across society.
The £12.5 million project received £3.75 million from the National Lottery Heritage Fund with further backing from the London Borough of Islington, the Julia Rausing Trust, the Garfield Weston Foundation, the Roald Dahl Story Company and the Dahl family, the centre said in a statement. Quentin Blake has written or illustrated more than 500 books, many in partnership with Roald Dahl, yet his 40,000-piece archive remains stored at separate premises. The new centre builds on the charity’s earlier operation as the House of Illustration in rented King’s Cross premises from 2014 to 2020.
Three ticketed exhibitions launched with the venue on 5 June 2026, the centre reported. Quentin Blake: Performance surveys the artist’s seven-decade interest in theatrical traditions from circus and pantomime to Shakespeare, displaying more than 100 original works many never shown publicly before. The opening season also includes Queer as Comics, the first major UK exhibition of 80 years of LGBTQIA+ sequential art, alongside MURUGIAH: Ever Feel Like…, an immersive display by the British-Sri Lankan illustrator and designer.
A free-entry library, learning spaces, garden and shop complement the paid exhibitions, enabling hands-on creative activities for all ages while permanent commissions illuminate the site’s aqueous industrial history. The centre had welcomed around 25,000 visitors by mid-September, London Post figures show. Its programme has since expanded to embrace Tove Jansson and her Families, opening on 21 November 2026, and Faerdom: Now, As Ever, which continues until 29 March 2027.
Adult tickets covering all current exhibitions cost £16.50, the centre stated. The venue has also hosted the Big Draw Festival 2026 launch on 3 October with artist-led workshops, collaborative artwork and gallery tours focused on the theme of making a mark. Such events reinforce the centre’s aim to engage diverse audiences in illustration as both heritage and contemporary practice.
Centre director Lindsey Glen said, “This Friday we celebrate a landmark opening: a permanent national centre for an artform that is used every day, all over the world, to share stories and ideas. We are so excited to welcome our first visitors. We hope to inspire them to look at the world afresh and empower them with new creative skills and tools of their own.” The centre additionally plans illustrator residencies and community projects that draw on the location’s 400-year heritage.
